The Beat goes on….Ska legends The English Beat return of a night of their greatest hits!

Never mind that Dave is the singer/songwriter from two of the most influential bands of the end of the millennium, The English Beat and General Public, he’s a stand up man from Brum. Whether it’s the personal as political in “How Can You Stand There”, making politics personal in “Stand Down Margaret”, taking a stand against global warming as he did with Greepeace’s “Alternative NRG”, or helping little kids stand up proudly with “Smile Train”, Dave has always stood for something.
Hailing from working-class Birmingham, England, Dave and The English Beat entered the music scene in the 1979. When The English Beat rushed on to the music scene in 1979, it was a time of social, political and musical upheaval. Into this storm came they came, trying to calm the waters with their simple message of love and unity set to a great dance Beat.

Over the course of the three albums, The English Beat achieved great success in their home country, charting several singles into the top 10. In addition to their UK chart success, in America the band found a solid base of young fans eager to dance to the their hypnotic rhythms. Their constant touring with iconic bands such as The Clash and The Police helped to boost their popularity in the States.
Despite his huge success, Dave didn’t stop singing and acting on the problems caused by the noise in this world. The band donated all the profits from their highly successful single version of “Stand Down Margaret” to the Committee for Nuclear Disarmament. They donated their music to causes including the anti-nuclear benefit album “Life in The European Theatre”, “The World of Music and Dance” album focusing on indigenous people’s art, and lent their voice to The Special AKA’s anthemic song of freedom “Free Nelson Mandela”, to name but a few.
Dave Wakeling once told me that every great band only has three really good albums. And true to form, The English Beat disbanded in 1983, after their third album, “Special Beat Service”.